Sewer Fees Proposal On Authority's Agenda

Taxpayers May Bear Brunt Of Expansion Costs

EAST WINDSOR — Depending on input received at tonight's public hearing, the water pollution control authority will have to decide whether it will revise the latest proposal on hookup fees.

According to the authority's latest plan, the majority of the $12.4 million needed for a sewer expansion project would be paid for by taxpayers.

The expansion project, which is expected to be completed in the spring, would increase the plant's processing capacity from 1.05 million gallons a day to 2.5 million.

The authority has said that new sewer hookup fees and other changes are necessary to start paying for the project, which has increased in cost from $9.9 million to $12.4 million.

Under the initial financial plan, prepared in 1992, the expansion would have been paid for by the first 2,350 new home or business owners to connect to the system.

But according to one authority member, population projections indicate that not enough new connections would be made to the sewer system in time to pay back the bond on the project. Ultimately, it would be the town's responsibility to cover the cost of construction if too few new users join the system.

Under the proposal, approximately two-thirds the cost of the estimated $12.4 million expansion project would be funded by taxpayers, said authority member Paul Catino. That could mean that current sewer users would pay $67 a year for the next 20 years.

The remaining one-third of the project would be paid for through a new sewer hookup charge of approximately $5,000 for every new house on the system.

``Somebody has to pay for the new plant,'' said authority Chairman Tom Davis. ``In the long run, it will be the new users who pay for the plant, but the town may temporarily need to pay until things get better again.''

Authority members said they will welcome suggestions and ideas before finalizing any plans. The authority meets tonight at 7 at the town hall annex.

``Nothing has been officially determined yet,'' Catino said. ``I will listen with an open mind to ideas people may have at the public hearing. Their ideas may be better than ours.''

Among the highlights of the proposal are:

* The new hookup fees apply to anyone connecting with the system for the first time or to those who increase usage of the sewer system because of a building expansion.

* For newly constructed homes and buildings, the entire hookup fee is needed prior to a certificate of occupancy being issued.

* For existing homes or buildings connecting to the system, the entire hookup fee needs to be paid before use of the system is allowed.

* Homeowners and property owners may finance the hookup charge. The payment plan requires a 50 percent down payment before the connection. The remaining half would be equally paid over a period no longer than seven years at 2 percent interest.